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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the sole unexpected element of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which taken aback observers seemed when news of the outcome and its consequences for the summit of the table emerged. Although this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Edinburgh side leading of the table and eight points ahead of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of both squad this season will have been in the least astonished by the result.

Over the past four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish football between them, reducing the beautiful game to almost a joke in the meantime. Nine games into the present season it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – might just be ready to strike while the Old Firm influence is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

Although a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's slightly less terminal decay has been able to worsen unnoticed. The defending title winners have already lost a considerable number from nine league games this season under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a individual who constantly checking his schedule to find out how many days are remaining until his deal ends, and woke up this day to discover the number is 246.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure at the club," he informed the media following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for any kind of a championship battle. "So the motivation is there to attempt to reverse the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the dreadful start to the season being experienced by Rangers, Rodgers and his players could normally be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the mix. Despite being obliged to function with a budget that is not just a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have added the money and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the SPL mix. In addition to investing ten million pounds during the off-season, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts exclusive use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a modest car. Spotted at Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the oddsmakers had massively misjudged his team's prospects of beating the struggling title holders, and filled his boots accordingly.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer the head coach after his team's latest success, their eighth win in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It might change opinions. It might validate views that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the lads have given us. In terms of skill, we appear in a strong position, and definitely physically we look in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Of course, it's not a position that the team is used to being in." Correct, the manager, it is not. But the wonderful, analytics-backed truth is that for the first time in many years, the Scottish game might genuinely have a championship battle that a team besides Celtic or Rangers can win.